homecoming eve

my dearest lyncoln and quinn,

i just got home from my final evening jaunt to the nicu to tuck you darlings in... for tomorrow you are coming HOME!!!

today you are 3 calendar months old and tomorrow will be 13 weeks to the day that you entered into this big beautiful world.

we are so over the moon excited that you will finally be in our arms at home. but, with the sweet, sometimes comes the bitter. you see, because of some extremely amazing people, you are able to come home to us.

for 92 days, your nurses and doctors helped you to grow when we couldn't. they loved you and sang to you and cuddled you when we weren't there. they held your mommy and mama's hand when our hearts were broken and lifted our spirits and made us laugh and assured us that everything was going to be fine. every. single. day.

in alphabetical order...

when you were a mere few hours old, sweet andrea showed how fiercely protective she was of you girls one moment, and, in the next moment, was dancing and singing to you. she also would always talk to you and carry on a conversation. always the optimist, she has carved a special niche into all of our hearts.

anita was there when you were born. her eyes lit the way and let us know that you were safe. she cheered you on and made us laugh and always took the time to explain things to us. sometimes twice. sometimes three times. but always so very patiently. she is a nicu rock with a very tender heart... who loves all little people :-)

we always felt very safe when danielle was taking care of you... there was always a very strong air of confidence about her, but she also has a wicked sense of humor.

diane b. always lifted us up and loved you out loud. she would not allow us to fall apart. she sprints like no other, saving lynci on numerous occasions, and then, would proudly exclaim, "hey! i saved your kid. again!" ;-)

when we needed answers, we would always seek out diane k. when we thought that things were bad, she would always put it into perspective and explain how it could be worse ;-) she refused to let us worry. she always lifted our spirits... and, she was always in cahoots with that anita ;-) p.s. mark harmon loves her.

sly jeannie weaseled her way into our hearts. besides being charismatic, jeannie was responsible for some of our most memorable firsts. she let c kangaroo with lynci for the first time. we were so overcome with emotion, and wanted to hug her because we were so grateful, but knew that we would turn into blubbering fools if we did. jeannie's confidence made us feel secure. and her twinkle made us love her.

we will never forget how excited kathy was the very first day that you girl's were dressed. she didn't tell us that she was going to put clothes on you, but rather quietly waited for mommy to lift the covers of your isolettes and then proudly beamed as she saw the joy that she created. in her silent way, kathy enjoyed creating special moments for us.

i think perhaps the fastest beebee bather i have ever seen is kelly. she introduced you girls to spa days and made you feel pretty as she would let you relax in your tubbies and then get you all dolled up for your photo shoots. i hope that she knows that those pictures mean the world to us. she is such a genuinely good person with an undying love for the shammy shake ;-)

sweet lisa has perhaps the kindest nature and gentlest spirit of anyone we have ever met. she would always look on the sunny side and guide us until we did, too :-)

mary ellen always made us feel secure that our bits would be okay under her care. her confidence was reassuring and she would never sweat the small stuff. she also had a nose for all things stinky, and, when it was our bits who were the source of the stinkiness, she would certainly take care of it! she may proclaim to be a member of the (big) people hater's club, but lucky for us, she has nothing but love for you wee ones... some of our favorite moments are when she would oogle over you :-)

meghan c. always made our hearts melt. it was so important to us that you girls felt love around you, and she made that a reality. she would cuddle and kiss on you and just love you. meghan is the one who brought our enire family together for the very first time and allowed the chicken to finally meet him's 'sissers'. she was always there to make us laugh and she always made sure that you were both fabulously coordinated ;-)

megan b. gets the distinguished honor of being the only nurse who made us openly cry in the nicu. however, she also was the queen of beebee field trips (yay!) and she is the nurse who took the brave initiative of slyly weaning lynci off of her oxygen :-)

michelle likes to pretend that she is a tough cookie, but we have seen her soft spot. she has an arsenal of pet names and the love that she has for you girls, and all babies, is ever so evident.

from the beginning, grandma nancy shared her positive energy with us. even after a 12hour night shift, we would call and she would sound so perky as she gave us the rundown of the night's events. she made the girls' extraordinary nameplates, and we can;t wait to frame them and hang them in their room.

in his quiet way, steve taught us all about honor. he never stopped believing in you. ever. and he refused to let everyone else not believe in you either. he referred to you as his girls... and he had a mean sense of style as he made your beds and put your outfits together. to this day, ne of your mama's favorite ensembles was the reindeer and the hearts ;-)

although the nicu is not a place you want your babies to be, the superheroes at st. v.'s made our stay welcoming and comfortable. we have not mentioned all of our wonderful nicu friends, but i hope that they know that we will always be eternally grateful for them. from the competitive nature of the coordinating bedding and jammies to the nicu jab sessions in cubicle 15a & b, we will never forget that you have given us the greatest gift ever... and we hope that you truly know that you make a difference in this world.